The Wright Show (audio)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Bob tries to lower American Prestige’s self-esteem 3:31 The Trump-Xi trade talks 7:08 Making sense of Trump’s nuclear saber-rattling 10:58 Signs of a US-China vibe shift 17:00 Is AI accelerating science? 23:49 Bill Gates’s climate change of heart 29:54 This week’s Gaza ceasefire death toll 34:43 Overtime preview: Bob vs Danny on international lawRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True), Derek Davison (Foreign Exchanges, American Prestige, Discontents), and Daniel Bessner (American Prestige, University of Washington). Recorded October 30, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.orgThis episode includes an Overtime segment that’s available to paid subscribers. If you’re not a paid subscriber, we of course encourage you to become one. If you are a paid subscriber, you can access the complete conversation either via the audio and video on this post or by setting up the paid-subscriber podcast feed, which includes all exclusive audio content. To set that up, simply grab the RSS feed from this page (by first clicking the “...” icon on the audio player) and paste it into your favorite podcast app. If you have trouble completing the process, check out this super-simple how-to guide.Join NonZero’s newly established Discord server: https://discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMFLink to schedule chat with Nikita: https://calendly.com/psychopolitica/office-hours0:00 Teaser 1:55 Trump on drug cartels: “We’re gonna kill them. They’re gonna be like, dead.” 4:31 Venezuela: Regime change disguised as drug war 5:44 Marco Rubio holds all the for

Via the post on the Buddhist Geeks Substack: In this Buddhist Geeks episode, Vince Fakhoury Horn and Robert Wright explore the intersection of Buddhism, ethics, and geopolitics as they reflect on Palestine, Jewish-Buddhist responses, moral responsibility, and the role of mindfulness amid global violence. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 What triggered Trump’s 100-percent tariff threat? 9:39 How China is mirroring the US playbook 17:14 The real escalation: America's "50% rule" 25:57 Why has US media coverage been so bad? 28:37 Biden's role in fueling the trade war 40:08 US China policy as cognitive empathy failure 48:06 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Triolo (Albright Stonebridge Group, https://pstaidecrypted.substack.com/). Recorded October 17, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Why Liron became a Yudkowskian 4:47 Eliezer Yudkowsky’s vision of AI apocalypse 12:15 Does intelligence want power? 18:54 Decoding Yudkowsky’s key Darwinian metaphor 30:42 Is doomerism crowding out other AI worries? 40:08 Liron: The silent majority is very AI anxious 45:11 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Liron Shapira (Pause AI, Relationship Hero). Recorded October 15, 2025.Join NonZero’s newly established Discord server: https://discord.gg/FByzCzWfTwitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Amazing Bob-Paul discount deal! 2:36 The Bari Weiss trivia test 19:18 Lasting peace in Gaza? 21:55 Why did Trump finally get tough on Bibi? 27:18 MAGA free speech debates 31:22 Is the AI bubble about to burst? 34:11 If anyone builds it, will everyone die? 41:48 Heading into Overtime: Ian McEwan, George Harrison, OpenAI, One Battle After AnotherRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded October 9, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.orgJoin NonZero’s newly established Discord server: https://discord.gg/FByzCzWf0:28 Was the Free Press bought “to control US media”? 9:14 Why pay $150M for a Substack? 11:23 Netanyahu on the TikTok deal and “giving direction” to the Jewish people 13:46 Pro-Israel donors giving a $2M ultimatum to Charlie Kirk about his ties to Tucker Carlson 17:54 How much influence does Israel have over US media? 24:56 Why Tucker Carlson’s appeal to Christians is a problem for Bibi 33:14 Trump: “I would make TikTok 100% MAGA related if I could” 41:24 Why Hamas would be crazy to trust Trump on his Gaza deal 51:19 Prigozhin conspiracy theory: Why would the Russian government want people to think he’s alive? 57:31 Cognitive sovereignty 1:00:25 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Nikita Petrov (https://psychopolitica.substack.com). Recorded October 7, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Steve’s book In Covid’s Wake: How Our Politics Failed Us 10:26 Were school closures smart policy? 17:48 The mask mandate question 23:57 Did medical experts get too much say? 30:24 The role of social class and political tribe 37:17 How dissent was suppressed 45:23 Bob takes a jab at Jay Bhattacharya 48:16 Heading to OT: Why Steve wrote the bookRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Stephen Macedo (Princeton University, In Covid’s Wake). Recorded September 16, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 The deal Hamas offered Bibi before October 7 12:14 How October 7 changed the landscape 22:58 Why Clinton’s Camp David talks failed 38:08 What Arafat was actually offered at Camp David 46:25 The centrality of the right of return 51:59 Beyond two states 56:21 Heading into OT: Abandoning false optimism is not pessimismRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Robert Malley (Yale - Jackson School of Global Affairs, Tomorrow is Yesterday). Recorded September 23, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:00 How Eliezer Yudkowsky’s new book envisions AI takeover 8:24 Will we ever really know how AI works? 15:10 The “paperclip maximizer” problem revisited 26:13 Will advanced AIs be insatiable? 31:39 David’s alternative takeover scenario: gradual disempowerment 43:31 Can—and should—we keep humans in the loop? 51:46 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and David Krueger (The University of Montréal). Recorded September 24, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

0:30 Glenn’s latest book, Self-Censorship 3:55 Why the Manhattan Institute dropped Glenn 13:25 Glenn on Gaza: “I can’t bear it.” 26:52 “Genocide” and other Israel speech code flashpoints 36:26 Has Trump’s anti-antisemitism push chilled campus speech? 42:30 The irony of the antisemitism crackdown 50:48 A few kind and less kind words for Bari Weiss 56:10 Are Israel’s defenders hurting their cause? 1:01:49 Glenn’s next big projectRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Glenn Loury (https://glennloury.substack.com/, Brown University, Hoover Institution, Late Admissions). Recorded September 15, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPodsGlenn's Substack: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Free speech after Charlie Kirk 20:28 Tyler Robinson’s strange messages 28:20 How influential was Kirk? 35:59 Do violent video games encourage violence? 48:31 Overtime topics: Paul’s debate triumph, Redford’s legacy, etc. 55:32 Heading into OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded September 18, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

0:28 How this conversation came to be 1:59 What surprised Glenn most about the Kirk killing 8:02 Who (or what) is driving our polarization? 17:03 Cognitive empathy for MAGA 2451 Reacting to Charlie Kirk on affirmative action 43:58 Are we re-running the 1960s? 51:14 Coming up in part 2: Israel-GazaRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Glenn Loury (https://glennloury.substack.com/, Brown University, Late Admissions, Self-Censorship). Recorded September 15, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Has the pace of AI progress slowed? 12:25 How the tech CEOs are learning to stop worrying 14:34 Mark Zuckerberg 23:12 Sam Altman 30:23 OpenAI’s attempt to shed its non-profit status 53:29 Dario Amodei 59:51 Heading into OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Holly Elmore (PauseAI US). Recorded September 11, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 "Would Putin send a weird sexually suggestive birthday greeting to a famous affluent well-connected pedophile?" 5:55 Decoding Trump's message in the greeting 13:19 Conspiracy theories vs official silence 19:14 Why is Ezra Klein content with "We'll never know"? 24:42 Why no president wants to release the Epstein files 26:50 Ghislaine names Clinton and Larry Summers 33:57 Does Epstein kill faith in democracy? 39:07 Trump vs. Putin: Authoritarian playbooks compared 43:18 Will Trumpism outlive Trump? 49:54 David Sacks embraces strongman tactics 56:36 How war changes everything overnight 1:00:59 Trump's Mexico invasion fantasy 1:05:33 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Nikita Petrov (https://psychopolitica.substack.com). Recorded September 09, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 The Bob-Paul secret sauce—spilled! 3:49 Mickey Kaus's latest contribution to Epsteinology 13:28 Paul fact-checks Mickey, gets fact-checked 20:16 What’s better: AI or indoor plumbing? 29:06 What Gary Marcus gets right—and (very) wrong—about AI 38:09 Has TV made us smarter? 42:13 The pros of the Google antitrust ruling 48:52 Putin’s paleo-transhumanism 53:29 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded September 04, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:30 Seth’s new NYT bestseller, The Fort Bragg Cartel 2:47 What is Delta Force? 8:02 The growth of Delta Force's covert ops and unaccountability 14:35 American "death squads" 18:51 Why cops and prosecutors cover up crimes by elite soldiers 26:33 The mysterious murder of Billy Lavigne 34:28 How invading Afghanistan fueled America's drug crisis 45:48 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Seth Harp (Rolling Stone, New America, The Fort Bragg Cartel). Recorded August 26, 2025Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

0:28 Bob welcomes Nikita back to the Nonzero team 6:41 WSJ's report on Trump's authoritarian drift 9:10 Three levers: streets, media, education system 13:22 Trump the businessman and Trump the politician 15:14 Why Putin was compelling in 1999, when Russia was a young democracy 23:01 Laws vs norms 29:29 Trump and lawfare: how independent is the US judiciary? 36:16 Partisanship among judges 38:52 Trump's view of the world as a game 43:08 Cynicism as a political brand 46:34 Nikita: Putin and Trump share a geopolitical worldview 50:10 The damage the US and Russia did to the international law 54:59 The evolution of Putin's understanding of geopolitics 59:46 Today's Overtime segment is open for everybody! 1:00:53 The crisis of the nation-state & NonZero's community building project 1:18:31 "Kremlin is not Russia": distinguishing between the nation and the state 1:19:59 Bob: We all need a tribe 1:24:56 What does it mean to be an American? 1:30:07 Nikita's Armenian propaganda: A legitimate reason to be proud of y

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Joe’s notable background 3:39 Is most of the MAGA coalition accelerationist? 7:52 Transhumanism, big tech, Klaus Schwab, and the noosphere 20:58 How the pandemic sparked a MAGA tech backlash 34:26 Palantir as bipartisan bête noire 40:41 The conservative case for AI regulation 52:01 Should fear of China trump fear of AI? 58:04 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Joe Allen (Singularity Weekly, War Room, Dark Aeon). Recorded August 13, 2025.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:30 Connor’s farewell 3:28 What’s next at NonZero 8:20 The looming invasion of Gaza City 11:28 Israel's one-state solution 16:25 Why did Trump give up on Gaza? 21:04 The "blame-it-on-Bibi" farce 31:32 A disappointing week for Ukraine 33:31 How to make security guarantees work 40:21 Ukraine's ticking time bombRecorded August 22, 2025.Read this week’s edition of the Earthling:https://www.nonzero.org/p/israel-lays-bare-its-one-state-solutionhttps://twitter.com/NonzeroNews https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods